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Funding for Idea-stage startups in India — November 2026
Grants, challenges and programmes open right now for startups at the Idea stage.
14 open · updated 4 Nov 2026
IdeaPrototypeMVPEarly TractionGrowth GlobalGujaratIndiaKarnatakaKeralaMaharashtraTelanganaUttar Pradesh
Accelerator
BE Hub Udaan — Accelerator Cohort 1
BE Hub (Saturo Technologies founders), Pune
Closes 18 Nov 2026 (13 days left)
Not disclosed
Grant
Grassroot Innovation Programme 2026
Govt of Karnataka (KITS)
Closes 23 Nov 2026
Up to ₹4 lakh per project
Grant
First in the World Challenge Grants 2026
Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)
Closes 30 Nov 2026
Up to ₹8 Cr (staged: ₹1 Cr / ₹4 Cr / ₹8 Cr)
Fellowship
Social Startups Programme (Cohort 1)
Azim Premji Foundation
Closes 31 Dec 2026
₹45K/month for 8 months, then ₹15–20 lakh/yr seed grant for 2 yrs
Grant
NIDHI-PRAYAS
DST (NIDHI) via PRAYAS centres
Rolling — apply any time
Up to ₹10 lakh (prototype)
Grant
BIRAC Biotechnology Ignition Grant (BIG)
BIRAC (Dept of Biotechnology)
Rolling — apply any time
Up to ₹50 lakh
Scheme
RKVY-RAFTAAR Agribusiness Incubation
Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
Rolling — apply any time
₹5 lakh pre-seed / ₹25 lakh seed
Scheme
MSME Innovative Scheme (Incubation)
Ministry of MSME via Host Institutes
Rolling — apply any time
Up to ₹15 lakh per idea
Scheme
Kerala Startup Mission Grants (Idea → Scale-up)
Kerala Startup Mission
Rolling — apply any time
₹3 lakh to ₹15 lakh by stage
Scheme
StartinUP Incentives (UP Startup Policy 2026)
Govt of Uttar Pradesh
Rolling — apply any time
₹20K/month for 2 yrs + up to ₹10L prototype + up to ₹15L seed
Scheme
Student Startup & Innovation Policy (SSIP 2.0)
Govt of Gujarat
Rolling — apply any time
Up to ₹2.5 lakh
Scheme
i-Hub Gujarat — Startup Srujan
i-Hub, Govt of Gujarat
Rolling — apply any time
₹2.5 lakh to ₹10 lakh
Equity Program
100Unicorns Accelerator VC
100Unicorns (formerly 9Unicorns)
Rolling — apply any time
Seed investment — varies
Equity Program
Zero Shot Fund
Zero Shot (OpenAI alumni)
Rolling — apply any time
USD 1M–4M (pre-seed / seed)
Not sure which one fits your startup?
Tell us your stage and sector and we'll shortlist the grants you can realistically win — then help you prepare the application.